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Afternoons paid at 0.5...is this right? (Primary)

Hi all, I'm looking for a new (part-time) job and have seen a post advertised for 5 afternoons only but paid at 0.5 of a full-time teacher. When I went to look round the school I asked about the timetable and I discovered that afternoons are 2 and a quarter hours long (minus a break of 15 mins) and mornings are 3 hours long (minus a 15 min break and possibly assembly times? Are these subtracted from directed time?). It seems too good to be true! Is it? If I applied and happened to get the job should I get it in writing that I'd be paid on 0.5? (I assume there'd be a contract of some sort of course...) Thanks

Hi, thanks for your response. I just read the section you suggested but it still doesn't make it clear to me....If a school 'wants' to pay a 0.5 teacher to work slightly less than 0.5 of the directed time can they? I understand about pro-rata pay and that theoretically schools should (or must) adhere to Pay & Conditions but if it goes in a teacher's favour and no-one else is upset by it can they do this 'at their discretion'? Cheers

If the school knowingly chooses to put you on the wrong fraction, then I'm sure you wouldn't complain. But it's a bit of a grey area.
What if later they say that you're on a 0.5 contract so that want more hours from you? Will you be willing to oblige - as required by your contract? Or if they make an adjustment to your hours to only pay for the correct hours at a later date?
Or worse, a new Head arrives, realises you've been overpaid and tries to get the money reclaimed? Are you likely to have any evidence that the 0.5 was deliberately agreed?
I would say that you could take it at face value, but be aware of the risks if you are effectively beig overpaid.

They might still fit in 0.5 of a f/t teaching timetable into the 5 afternoons, pay you half pay and allow some of your PPA to be taken off the premises (or by coming in for the last 30 minutes of the lunch break a few days per week.